Vocational Rehabilitation Reimbursement Case Processing System, Social Security Administration, Office of Employment and Income Support Programs

Effective Date: January 11, 2006

(71 F.R. 1840)

SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION NOTICE OF SYSTEM OF RECORDS REQUIRED BY
THE PRIVACY ACT OF 1974

SYSTEM NUMBER: 60-0221

System name:

Vocational
Rehabilitation Reimbursement Case Processing System, Social Security
Administration, Office of Employment and Income Support Programs.

Security classification:

None.

System Location:

Social Security Administration

Office of Employment and Income
Support Programs

6401 Security Boulevard

Baltimore,
MD
21235

Social
Security Administration

Office
of Systems

6401 Security Boulevard

Baltimore,
MD
21235

In addition, reimbursement claims documents
may be temporarily transferred to other locations within the Social Security
Administration (SSA). Contact the system manager at the address below to
inquire about these addresses.

Categories of individuals covered by the system:

This system
maintains information on disabled and blind individuals who received vocational
rehabilitation (VR) services for which State VR agencies (VRA) or alternate
participants seek reimbursement under sections 222(d) and 1615(d) of the Social
Security Act because the individuals were entitled/eligible to Social Security
benefits and/or

Supplemental
Security Income (SSI) payments based on disability or blindness while receiving
those VR services.

The individuals described above will be
included in the system when they:

(1) Performed substantial gainful activity
(SGA) for a continuous period of at least 9 months as a result of VR services
received or;

(2) Medically recovered while in a VR
program and continued to receive cash payments under section 225(b) and/or
1631(a)(6) of the Social Security Act; or

(3) Refused, without good cause, to continue
or to cooperate in a VR program in such a way as to preclude their successful
rehabilitation; and

(4) State VR agencies or alternate
participants filed claims for reimbursement of the cost of VR services rendered
to the individuals. (An alternate participant is a public or private agency,
organization, institution, or individual which the Commissioner of Social
Security may use to provide VR services to disabled and blind
beneficiaries/recipients within a State if that State is unwilling to participate
in the SSA-VR Program or does not have an approved plan for VR services.)

Categories of in the system:

Data in the
system consist of:

Identifying information such as the VR
client's name, Social Security number (SSN), disability diagnosis, sex and date
of birth;

The SSN and identification code under
which the VR client received Social Security benefits/SSI payments;

The type of benefits/payments received;
the monthly benefit/payment amount;

Information relating to the period he/she
was entitled/eligible to benefits/payments and, if
benefits/payments were terminated or suspended, the basis for
termination/suspension;

Information relating to his/her yearly
earnings and employment;

Information relating to the period he/she
received VR services and the nature and costs of those services; and

Information required to
determine if and when he/she:

Performed SGA for a continuous period of
at least 9 months based on services the State VRA or alternate participant
provided;

Medically recovered while in a VR program
and continued to receive cash payments under section 225(b) and/or 1631(a)(6)
of the Social Security Act; or

Refused, without good
cause, to continue or to cooperate in a VR program in such a way as to preclude
his/her successful rehabilitation.

Authority for maintenance of the system:

Sections 222(d)
and 1615(d) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 422 and 1382d).

Purpose(s):

Data in this system will be used to
determine if a State VR agency or alternate participant can be reimbursed for
the costs of VR services provided to individuals while they were entitled/eligible to Social Security benefits or SSI
payments based on disability or blindness. Data also will be used for program
evaluation purposes and to determine what types of individuals are being
successfully rehabilitated so that Social Security beneficiaries/SSI recipients
with similar profiles are targeted for rehabilitation. In some instances,
information furnished by a VR agency or alternate participant may be used as a
lead in determining if an individual's disability/blindness payments should
continue.

Routine uses of records maintained in the system, including categories
of users and the purposes of such uses:

Disclosure may be made for routine uses as indicated below.

1. To a State vocational rehabilitation
agency or alternate participant regarding the basis for SSA's decision on its claim for reimbursement and the reason(s) costs were allowed or
denied.

2. To the Department of Justice (DOJ), a
court or other tribunal, or to another party before such tribunal, when:

(a) The Social Security Administration
(SSA), or any component thereof; or

(b) Any SSA employee in his/her official
capacity; or

(c) Any SSA employee in his/her individual
capacity where DOJ (or SSA, where it is authorized to do so) has agreed to
represent the employee; or

(d) The United States or any agency thereof
where SSA determines that the litigation is likely to affect SSA or any of its
components, is a party to litigation or has an interest in such litigation, and
SSA determines that the use of such records by DOJ, a court or other tribunal,
or another party before the tribunal, is relevant and necessary to the litigation,
provided, however, that in each case, SSA determines that such disclosure is
compatible with the purpose for which the records were collected.

3. To a congressional office in response to
an inquiry from that office made at the request of the subject of the record.

4. To the General Services Administration
and the National Archives Records Administration (NARA) under 44 U.S.C. 2904
and 2906, as amended by the NARA Act of 1984, information which is not
restricted from disclosure by Federal law for the use of those agencies in
conducting records management studies.

5. To contractors or other Federal
agencies, as necessary, for the purpose of assisting the Social Security
Administration (SSA) in the efficient administration of its programs. We will
disclose information under this routine use only in situations in which SSA may
enter into a contractual or similar agreement with a third party to assist in
accomplishing an Agency function relating to this system of records.

6. To the Internal Revenue Service, for the
purpose of auditing the Social Security Administration's compliance with
safeguard provisions of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.

7. To the Rehabilitation Service
Administration (RSA) for use in its program studies and development of
enhancements for, State vocational rehabilitation programs to which applicants
or beneficiaries under Titles II and/or XVI of the Social Security Act may be
referred. Data released to RSA will not include any personally identifying
information such as names or Social Security numbers.

8. To student volunteers, individuals
working under a personal services contract, and other workers who technically
do not have the status of Federal employees, when they are performing work for
the Social Security Administration (SSA), as authorized by law, and they need
access to personally identifiable information in SSA records in order to
perform their assigned Agency functions.

9. To the Secretary of Health and Human
Services or to any State, the Commissioner shall disclose any record or
information requested in writing by the Secretary for the purpose of
administering any program administered by the Secretary, if records or
information of such type were so disclosed under applicable rules, regulations
and procedures in effect before the date of enactment of the Social Security
Independence and Program Improvements Act of 1994.

10. We
may disclose information to appropriate Federal, State, and local agencies,
entities, and persons when (1) we suspect or confirm that the security or
confidentiality of information in this system of records has been compromised;
(2) we determine that as a result of the suspected or confirmed compromise
there is a risk of harm to economic or property interests, identity theft or
fraud, or harm to the security or integrity of this system or other systems or
programs of SSA that rely upon the compromised information; and (3) we
determine that disclosing the information to such agencies, entities, and persons
is necessary to assist in our efforts to respond to the suspected or confirmed
compromise and prevent, minimize, or remedy such harm. SSA will use this
routine use to respond only to those incidents involving an unintentional
release of its records.

Policies and practices for storing, retrieving, accessing, retaining,
and disposing of records in the system:

Storage:

Records will be
stored in magnetic media (e.g., computer disc packs) and, on a temporary basis,
in paper form.

Retrievability:

Data will be
retrieved from the system by the SSN of the individual who received VR services
for which the State VRA or alternate participant filed the reimbursement claim.

Safeguards:

Safeguards for
automated data have been established in accordance with the Systems Security
Handbook. This includes maintaining computer disc packs or other magnetic files
with personal identifiers in secured storage areas accessible only to
authorized personnel. SSA employees having access to the computerized records
and employees of any contractor who may be utilized to develop and maintain the
software for the automated system will be notified of criminal sanctions for
unauthorized disclosure of information about individuals. Also, contracts with
third parties, if any, will contain language which delineates the conditions
under which contractors will have access to data in the system and what
safeguards must be employed to protect the data.

Manually maintained data will be stored in
either lockable file cabinets within locked rooms or otherwise secured areas.
Access to these records will be restricted to those employees who require them
to perform their assigned duties. Access http://www.socialsecurity.gov/foia/bluebook/app_g.htm for additional
information relating to SSA data security measures.

Retention and disposal:

Computerized
records and manual data (claim applications, keyed claim forms, etc.) used in
the VR claims reimbursement process will be maintained for a period of 6 years,
3 months, after the close of the fiscal year in which final adjudication was
made. Means of disposal will be appropriate to the storage medium (e.g.,
erasure of discs, shredding of paper records, or transfer to another system of
records).

System manager(s) and address(es):

Associate Commissioner

Office of Employment and Income
Support Programs

Social
Security Administration

6401 Security Boulevard

Baltimore,
MD
21235

Notification procedures:

An individual can determine if this system
contains a record about him/her by writing to the system manager(s) at the
above address and providing his/her name, SSN or other information that may be
in the system of records that will identify him/her. An individual requesting
notification of records in person should provide the same information, as well
as provide an identity document, preferably with a photograph, such as a
driver's license or some other means of identification. If an individual does
not have any identification documents sufficient to establish his/her identity,
the individual must certify in writing that he/she is the person claimed to be
and that he/she understands that the knowing and willful request for, or
acquisition of, a record pertaining to another individual under false pretenses
is a criminal offense.

If notification is requested by telephone,
an individual must verify his/her identity by providing identifying information
that parallels information in the record to which notification is being
requested. If it is determined that the identifying
information provided by telephone is insufficient, the individual will be
required to submit a request in writing or in person. If an individual
is requesting information by telephone on behalf of another individual, the
subject individual must be connected with SSA and the requesting individual in
the same phone call. SSA will establish the subject individual's identity
(his/her name, SSN, address, date of birth and place of birth, along with one
other piece of information, such as mother's maiden name) and ask for his/her
consent in providing information to the requesting individual.

If a request for notification is submitted
by mail, an individual must include a notarized statement to SSA to verify
his/her identity or must certify in the request that he/she is the person
claimed to be and that he/she understands that the knowing and willful request
for, or acquisition of, a record pertaining to another individual under false
pretenses is a criminal offense. These procedures are in accordance with SSA
Regulations (20 CFR 401.40(c)).

Record access procedures:

Same
as Notification procedures. Also, a requester should reasonably
identify and specify the information he/she is attempting to obtain. These
procedures are in accordance with SSA Regulations (20 CFR 401.40(c)).

Contesting data procedures:

Same
as Notification procedures. Also, an individual contesting data in the
system should identify the data, specify the information he/she is contesting
and the corrective action sought, and the reasons for the correction, with
supporting justification showing how the record is incomplete, untimely,
inaccurate, or irrelevant. These procedures are in accordance with SSA
Regulations (20 CFR 401.65(a)).

Record source categories:

Data in this system will be derived in part
from other SSA systems of records such as the Earnings Record and Self-Employment
Income System, 60-0059, Claims Folder System, 60-0089, Master Beneficiary
Record, 60-0090, and the Supplemental Security Income Record and Special
Veterans Benefits, 60-0103; the reimbursement applications submitted by State
VR agencies or alternate participants; earnings information provided by the
wage-earner/beneficiary; and investigations conducted by SSA and State VR
agencies field employees which relate to a VR client's post-VR work activity,
participation in a VR program after medical recovery, and/or reason(s) for
failing to cooperate in a VR program.

Important Information:

Other Government Websites:

Follow:

External Link Disclaimer

You are exiting the Social Security Administration's website.

Select OK to proceed.

Disclaimer

The Social Security Administration (SSA) website contains links to websites not affiliated with the United States government. These may include State and Local governmental agencies, international agencies, and private entities.

SSA cannot attest to the accuracy of information provided by such websites. If we provide a link to such a website, this does not constitute an endorsement by SSA or any of its employees of the information or products presented on the non-SSA website.

Also, such websites are not within our control and may not follow the same privacy, security or accessibility policies. Once you visit such a website, you are subject to the policies of that site.